According to the S1000D specification, business rules are decisions made by a project or organisation on implementing S1000D. These rules encompass all aspects of S1000D and are not confined to authoring or illustrating. They may also address issues not defined in S1000D, such as how S1000D interfaces with other standards, specifications, and business processes related to its implementation.
S1000D offers a list of Business Rules known as the Business Rules Decision Points (BRDPs) Index, which can aid in developing these rules. The BRDP index is part of the S1000D files available for free download from the S1000D website. It’s crucial to use the BRDPs relevant to the specific project or organisation’s S1000D issue. Every BRDP requires a decision, which may include affirming its use, providing specific details and examples, referencing project and organisation processes and documents (such as those for security, verification and validation, and data transfer), or annotations for another stakeholder to propose (e.g., Contractor to propose, organisation/project to agree). If a BRDP is not needed for the project, it should be annotated as “Not Used.”
In cases where necessary business rule decisions are not covered by the S1000D BRDPs index, a project or organisation may create their own, as detailed in Chapter 2.5.3 of the S1000D specification. Business Rules are dynamic documents, often requiring updates as the organisation and project evolve. It’s essential to involve as many stakeholders as possible from the outset, to meticulously document the business rules even if it’s just in a simple Excel spreadsheet or bulleted list in Word, and to review and update the rules as the organisation and project develop. Chapter 2.5 of the S1000D specification serves as a useful guide in this process.
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